Outreach Spotlight: CatchLight + Everyday Projects

CatchLight + Everyday Projects

Present Everyday Bay Area

Everyday Bay Area, a project of CatchLight, focuses on the power of visual storytelling to help SF Bay Area residents see and understand each other across identities, ages, demographics and geography. PhotoWings partnered with CatchLight to interview some of their fascinating participants - to learn about them and their thinking. In this compilation video we explore their early influences and what sparked their interests in photography.

The EDBA project curator, Pei Ketron, has brought together a group of local professionals and amateurs to make “photography that matters”, primarily an Instagram feed. It highlights stories that connect people to ignite curiosity and promote inclusion, tolerance and respect. EDBA explores issues that are unique to life in the Bay Area with the theme, Picturing the New California Dream. The California Dream has always meant seeking fame and fortune, from the Gold Rush to Hollywood to Silicon Valley. But now, California faces vast economic disparity among its residents. What is the California Dream today?

The public can participate by using the hashtag #everydaybayarea on Instagram to be considered for inclusion in their Instagram feed and exposure at live events and exhibitions. There is also a page on Facebook.

Everyday Bay Area is a project of CatchLight, The Everyday Projects and KQED and has partnered with PhotoWings

Watch: Co-Founder Austin Merrill on the Everyday Projects

Meet the Everyday Bay Area Photographers

Alpana Aras-King – Based in the East Bay, Alpana is an award-winning lifestyle and portrait photographer originally from Mumbai, India. Her formal art-school and advertising agency background goes hand in hand with her ability to see the big picture. Clients hire Alpana for her authentic storytelling and ability to create unique and engaging content. With her masterful eye, she has the ability to find a story in life’s everyday moments.

Jen Baxter is a writer, photographer and San Francisco native. Her stories encourage people to be more independent, aware and creative. You can find more work at JenBaxter.com or follow along on Instagram @JenBaxterSF

Emma Marie Chiang is an independent visual journalist and proud San Francisco native. She thrives by telling photo and video stories of people in her home city. Emma focuses on documenting stories of displaced communities and cares about the rights of marginalized people and women. She believes storytelling has the power to plant seeds of curiosity, dialogue, inclusion, reconciliation and hope between individuals and communities. Her work is featured in publications and non-profits in the Bay Area. She received her B.A. in photojournalism, and minor in Holistic Health at San Francisco State University. She has interned at the San Francisco Business Times, San Francisco Examiner, SF Weekly and participated in the Missouri Photo Workshop, Cuba68. Her work can be seen on emmamariechiang.com / Instagram @echiangphoto

Dubbed the “hood historian,” Rasta Dave was born and raised in San Francisco, California’s vibrant Excelsior District. His captivating and unapologetic candid street scenes and portraits give viewers an inside view–not always pleasant–of whats really happening on these California corners. As he uses the City Life as his art and the streets as his canvas he gives you a taste of reality. His motto: one camera, one lens, no studio no rehearsal…strictly REAL street life and culture. With street credentials that span from the Bay down LA, Rasta is able to document neighborhoods on few outsiders get to see.

Tate Drucker is a New York born award-winning photographer whose love affair with travel and photography has taken her all over the world Her work has been featured in publications and nonprofits across the globe, but always circles back to where she now resides in San Francisco. Her work can be seen on www.tatedruckerphoto.com / Instagram: @tatedrucker, and you can follow along with her travels on her blog: www.theupwardbound.com

Brenton Gieser is a photographer, documentarian, and visual storyteller originating from Half Moon Bay, California and currently producing the majority of his work in San Francisco. He approaches his work as a personal mandate to help raise questions around social and economical injustice with a desire to move us towards deeper community understanding and social equity. His current work centers around a long-term photo-documentary called Tender Souls, where he and project partner Felix Uribe documents the lives of a wide range of Tenderloin community members through a combination of spoken interviews, portrait photography and photo journalism. His work has been published by publications such as the New York Times, Vice, Upworthy, amongst others.

Pendarvis Harshaw is a Senior Communications Associate at PolicyLink, working to amplify stories of policies and practices that are moving us toward a more equitable world. Prior to becoming a member of the PolicyLink family, Pen earned a degree from UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, and an undergraduate degree from Howard University’s School of Communications. Pen is a published journalist with bylines from Youth Radio, Fusion, The Huffington Post, National Public Radio and more. He runs a website dedicated to documenting the wisdom of elder African American men in his community, OGToldMe.Tumblr.Com. And although he is no longer a high school teacher, he is forever an educator. Oh, and he’s from Oakland. And proud of it.

Christie Hemm Klok (b. 1985) was born and raised in Southern California, where she graduated from Art Center College of Design with a BFA in Photography and Imaging. Christie was initially drawn to documentary photography for its ability to educate people about social issues. From there she discovered the importance of telling all kinds of stories and continues to do so through her work. Christie is currently based out of San Francisco.

Duc Le grew up in a small town in Texas. His passion for art and technology led him to the SF Bay Area where he enjoys a career in design. He finds inspiration exploring the beautiful Bay Area with his family. Follow along on Instagram @ducstar

Christopher Michel is an accomplished photojournalist. His collection includes photographs from extreme locations like the North & South Poles, Everest, Papua New Guinea, DR Congo and at the edge of space (aboard a U-2 Spy Plane). He’s also had the opportunity to photograph a variety of global leaders, including the 14th Dalai Lama. His work is prolific and his photographs have been used by National Geographic, the Smithsonian, the New York Times, the BBC, Outside Magazine, and others. His photos have been seen millions of times and have appeared on the covers of many newspapers & magazines. His “Flying Emperor” photograph was the 2nd place finisher in the 2014 Wikipedia Picture of the Year.

Mark Murrmann is Mother Jones’ photo editor. Mark came to Mother Jones in 2007 with a background as a freelance editorial and documentary photographer. He studied photography at the University of California-Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. He was a student winner of the Alexia Foundation Photography Grant and attended the Eddie Adams Photography Workshop.

Omid Scheybani was born and raised in Germany to parents from Iran, and has been calling the Bay Area his home since 2011 when he moved to SF through his tech employer. Omid is currently an graduate student at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and considers photography one of his three big passions in life (next to storytelling and writing). He is specialized in a variety of photography styles which are mostly driven through his travels around the world from Cuba to Iran to North Korea.

Courtney Stack is a multimedia journalist, fiction writer, artist, and dance choreographer living in San Francisco.

Felix Uribe – As a Bay Area native, Felix Uribe has been documenting life on the streets in San Francisco for the past 10 years. Passionate about life’s “in between moments”, Felix’s work displays a sensitivity for true human authenticity and uniquely beautiful aesthetics. With his one of a kind street portraiture, Felix portrays people as they are while simultaneously pulling back the layers often revealing more about the subject than text or video would be capable of sharing.

Kaitlin Yapchaian is a digital experience lead working in global retail marketing. Outside of work she devotes her creative energy to a variety of photography pursuits. Kaitlin grew up in New England and received a B.A. in Studio Art from the University of Richmond. She called New York City home for almost a decade before moving to the West coast, where she currently resides. You can follow along at kaitlinyap.com, kaitlinyap.photos or @kaitlinyap.

Everyday Bay Area Photographer Pendarvis Harshaw – OG Told Me

Photographer Pendarvis Harshaw’s introduces his project and blog, OG Told Me, a series of stories, lessons and photographs of older men in the Bay Area community. "OG” is a term of respect that has transcended its literal meaning, “original gangster.” Nowadays, as one of Harshaw’s interview subjects points out, it really just means “old guard.”